MTT January mistakes: Post your 3 biggest ones.

[registrar]

1. Not betting enough for value/undervaluing tptk in early stages. It's easy to forget that the reason you have a chance to beat a large field is because many in that field will limp in or raise with KQ, then call a reraise, then call your AQ all the way down. Ditto, ace rag. By the turn, you're thinking 'he's gotta have two pair' and ease off the betting when the extra chips I could have won there would be very helpful later.

2. Conversely, putting players on a hand that you assume you can knock them off. For example, weak loose UTG limps, you raise 4x from button with 88. An ace flops. Donk makes a weak raise, you reraise, he calls. Conclusion: he's got an ace, he doesn't like his kicker. Chip-saving conclusion: it doesn't matter how much you have repped a stronegr ace pre-flop, post-flop, turn and river, he's not going to let that A2o go and you're going to look pretty silly turning over 88. (This was my worst hand in Janaury).

3. Not committing to each tournie I play. When I switched from mainly cash to mainly MTTs six months ago, my initial results were great, four first places and a second in my first 10 MTTs. This was partly a rush, partly luck, partly intuition and part solid ring game poker. But, I think, the main thing was the respect I gave the games. I assumed that to beat 300 other players, I needed to be fully focussed at all times for the whole thing. Then I read HoH my play became a lot more sloppy as I thought more about M etc. and less about just winning each hand, or getting out when behind.

My solutions are:

1. Play cash again. It's doing my BR great good and I have missed it, after the many hours of hanging around, doing nothing, in MTTs. I'm hoping this will improve my general MTT game.

2. Play many fewer MTTs but for higher stakes. I think this makes the opponents easier to read and you feel better going out when outplayed and you've learned something rather than busting out because you've made reasonable assumptions about terrible players. Also, I'm pretty confident that I will play much better in a £50 buy-in and am likley to do a lot better in that thajn I will in five £10 buy-ins. It takes less time, is more exciting etc. etc.

I've also taken up drinking (in moderation) while playing again. Christ, you may as well enjoy it!